The Cinematologists Podcast

Blue Steel (with director Kim Longinotto)

Cinematologists contributor Kingsley Marshall picks Blue Steel to discuss his research on the work of director Kathryn Bigelow and Neil interviews British film director Kim Longinotto about her work. Dario and Neil also discuss whether films can have real social or political impact.Kim Longinotto's Dreamcatcher, official site.Kim Longinotto talks to fellow Cinematologists interviewee Jeanie Finlay for The Talkhouse. 

Le Quai des Brumes

Le Quai Des Brumes is a seminal of French director Marcel Carné. Starring the enigmatic Jean Gabin it epitomises Carné’s poetic realism, often seen as influential to Hollywood film noir, evocating the intense beauty and tragedy of wartime Europe. Capturing the romantic fatalism of the protagonists the film is often defined as critique of the moral and social state of the French nation during World War II.

The Hunger (with directors the Blaine brothers)

Neil is joined by colleague Dr Victoria Byard to introduce and discuss Tony Scott's erotic vampire horror The Hunger. Staring Catherine Deneuve, Susan Sarandon and, of course, the late David Bowie the film draws a range of different reactions from the audience at Falmouth's School of Film and Television. On the Episode Neil also interviews film making duo the Blaine Brothers about their recent British Horror release Nina Forever and Dario and Neil cover a range of subjects including cinema's ability to preserve star iconography.

Bronco’s House (with director Mark Jenkin)

For this episode we are back at the Electric Palace in Hastings where Dario talks to Cornish filmmaker Mark Jenkin about his fascinating new film. In Bronco's House  a young man strives to provide a home for him, his pregnant girlfriend and their unborn child. The film is an aesthetic meditation on property, power and the future which is shot on a clockwork camera, using 16mm black and white negative stock, and process by hand through and instant coffee based developer. Bronco's House is available to download and stream. CLICK HERE.

Interview with Professor Murray Pomerance

In a wide ranging interview Dario talks to prolific film scholar Murray Pomerance. The discussion touches on everything from Zabriskie Point to The Force Awakes, from The Clouds of Sils Maria to The Bourne Identity, from Marnie to The Dark Knight Professor Pomerance demonstrates an in-depth knowledge, engaging presence and fascinating insights on all things cinema.Murray Pomerance is Professor in the Department of Sociology at Ryerson University, Toronto. His publications include Moment of Action: Riddles of Cinematic Performance (forthcoming), Marnie (BFI, 2014), Alfred Hitchcock's America (Polity, 2013), The Horse Who Drank the Sky: Film Experience Beyond Narrative and Theory (Rutgers 2008), and An Eye for Hitchcock (Rutgers 2004), among others.He has edited or co-edited numerous volumes, including The Last Laugh: Strange Humors of Cinema (Wayne State, 2013), Hollywood's Chosen People: The Jewish Experience in American Cinema (Wayne State, 2012), Shining in Shadows: Movie Stars of the 2000s (Rutgers 2011), and Cinema and Modernity (Rutgers 2006), among others. In August 2009, he appeared on Broadway in conjunction with a performance of The 39 Steps and in August 2013 his visual essay (co-authored with R. Barton Palmer) appeared on the Criterion DVD of John Frankenheimer's Seconds.For further details and publications click here.

The Trial (with writer Josh Karp)

Our first screening of 2016 is Orson Welles's at times overlooked classic, The Trial. Adapted from Franz Kafka’s dark novel about alienation, bureaucracy, and the fundamental question of freewill. The Trial stars Anthony Perkins in a role every bit as compelling as his star turn in Psycho and features Welles’s trademark kinetic cinematography which perfectly captures the terror of faceless institutional authority. Read Richard Brody's New Yorker article on The Trial here.This was our first screening at the wonderful Electric Palace Cinema in Hastings.The episode features an interview with Josh Karp who recently published an exquisite book on the crazy saga of Welles's final, incomplete film, The Other Side Of The Wind. Find information on the book here.Read a review from RogerEbert.com here.

Interview with Dr. Catherine Grant

In a special bonus episode Dario talks to Dr. Catherine Grant, Senior Lecturer in Film Studies at the University of Sussex and founder of the Film Studies For Free online archive. The conversation covers a wide range of areas including Catherine's route in film academia, the current status of film and film studies particularly in the digital context, the Internet & open source publishing, teaching, research and the challenges of higher education for the arts and humanities, video essays, blogging & podcasting, feminism in film and academia, and discourses of free speech and political correctness.Link's to Catherine's Websites: Film Studies for Free; InTransition: Journal of Videographic and Film and Moving image Studies; ReframeJason Mittell - Complex TelevisionCatherines's introduction to Laura Mulvey and Possibilities for the DigitalBordwell and Thompson: Observations on Film ArtGirish Shambu: Film BlogKevin Lee: Shooting Down PicturesCatherine's video essay using Laura Mark's notion of Haptic CriticismPatricia White: Women's Cinema, World CinemaSophie Myers: Political AnimalRichard Dyer: Sissy RepresentationsBrett Easton Ellis Podcast: with Quintin Tarantino

In the Mood for Love

In one of the highlights of the year The Cinematologists screen Wong Kar-Wai's stylish masterpiece as part of the BFI 'love' season in association with The Poly, Falmouth. A veritable modern masterpiece In the Mood for Love stars Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung in iconic roles as lovers seeking refuge from disappointment, loneliness and the harsh realities of their surroundings. Dario and Neil also discuss their cinematic highlights of the year.The Guardian article by Peter Walker referred to in the podcast can be found here: http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2011/dec/19/in-the-mood-for-love